Former Hampton School student Zafar Ansari seems destined never to play for England.

The 23-year-old left arm spinner was named in the England squad set to take on Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates next month on Tuesday.

Hours later, Ansari, who featured for Surrey Championship Premier Division side Weybridge earlier in his career, was left nursing a dislocated thumb in his bowling hand after dropping a catch in his side’s LV= County Championship Division Two clash with Lancashire.

It came after Ansari had been called into the England ODI squad earlier this summer and was picked to face Ireland only to see his debut abandoned due to rain.

His recent elevation had been reward for taking 44 wickets and scoring more than 700 runs in first class cricket this summer, helping secure Surrey a return to the LV= County Championship top flight and a berth in this Saturday’s Royal London One-Day Cup final at Lord’s.

England selector had James Whitaker had hoped Ansari would push fellow spinners Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali for a Test starting spot in conditions that should suit.

But he is now facing a race against time to be fit to take his place on the plane with the extent of the injury to be assessed over the next few days.

“The challenge we face against Pakistan will be different and the composition of our squads reflects the conditions we expect to encounter in the UAE,”he said when announcing the squad.

“Zafar Ansari’s potential excites us and he will provide strong competition for Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali in the Test squad after enjoying an excellent domestic season with bat and ball.”

The England squad arrive in the UAE on September 30 to play three Tests, four ODIs and three T20 internationals with Pakistan.

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